Currently, more and more environments require password authentication in order to access environment resources. As a result, tracking and managing this abundant number of passwords in an efficient and secure manner has become increasingly difficult. Presently, passwords are managed in an “ad-hoc” de-centralized manner. For example, passwords are managed using ascii documents (or other text files) located on a server (e.g., UNIX, Windows™, etc.), and access to the document is protected by file level permissions.
Such a method of storing passwords can be difficult to manage and keep secure. Since many environments span across a number of computer systems over a number of networks, knowing exactly where a certain password is located, for what system the password applies, what level of permissions are associated with the password, etc., can be extremely difficult if not impossible. In addition, when passwords are accessed and transmitted across networks, the security of such passwords may be compromised. Furthermore, as system environments grow and increase their number of associated users, the problem is compounded. Hence, there is a need for improved methods and systems in the art.